Starbucks to open store in Vienna

VIENNA – A nationally known chain of coffee franchises will open a store in Vienna.

Starbucks and the PM Company of Vienna have signed a lease to open a full-service free-standing restaurant at the North Entrance of the Grand Central Mall, the PM Company announced on Tuesday.

“We have been working on securing a Starbucks for our area for several years,” said Pat Minnite Jr., a managing partner of the PM Company. “We’ve had two different locations planned, only to see something stop the process. All the pieces finally came together, and we are excited to now offer this opportunity for our community.”

Site preparation and construction have begun by the contractor, Mark Mondo Building and Excavating. The store is tentatively planned to open in late summer.

Workers on Tuesday were removing the trees from the site, located behind Rhododendron Design along the North Entrance just off Grand Central Avenue.

Planned is a 2,400-square-foot store that will include a drive-through and an outdoor seating area, the PM Company said. The design will be based on a store in California.

“I think it’s fantastic,” Mayor Randy Rapp said. “That’s one of the businesses people have asked for for years,.”

The mayor doesn’t drink coffee, but acknowledges that other people do and enjoy a cup from Starbucks.

“I know my kids and my wife will be happy,” he said.

Particular attention was paid for traffic flow, Rapp said. Cars will be directed in a way to prevent congestion at the intersection, he said.

“It should be a very smooth transition, traffic wise,” Rapp said.

The first Starbucks opened in 1971 in the Pike Place Market in Seattle. The name was inspired by the Herman Melville classic, “Moby Dick.”

By the end of 2017, Starbucks had more than 25,000 stores.

The nearest freestanding Starbucks is in Zanesville, Ohio, Lisa Collins, PM Company spokesman, said. It’s 58 miles away, she said.

Starucks also is located in Charleston, but the store in Vienna will be larger, Collins said.

Starbucks coffee is sold at the Blennerhassett Hotel in its coffee shop.

The PM Company provides real estate development, management and services and has property primarily in Parkersburg, Vienna, Boaz and Belpre with more than 120 tenants. The three managing partners are Karmyn Minnite Conley, Pat Minnite Jr. and Jason Minnite.

The PM Company is top-shelf, according to Rapp.

“They do everything first-class,” he said.

Pat Minnite has worked with Starbucks off and on over the years trying to put a deal together.

“This is actually my third stab at it,” he said.

Among the original locations was on Grand Central Avenue where Firehouse Subs and Green Kiwi are located, Minnite said. The building was designed for a drive-through, he said.

However, while the location was on the south side of the road, a requirement of Starbucks, the location was not within the area preferred by Starbucks, that being between Wal-Mart and Home Depot, also a requirement of the company, Minnite said.

“They wanted it to be on the south on Grand Central Avenue and not going north, and that’s tough,” he said.